Gangmasters

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the Gangmasters Act 2004 is expected to come fully into force.

Alun Michael: Since the Gangmasters (Licensing) Act received Royal Assent in July 2004, a Commencement Order has been laid before Parliament bringing into effect from 1 December 2004 those provisions in the Act which relate to the establishment of the Gangmasters Licensing Authority. Consultation on the draft Gangmaster Licensing Authority Regulations has been completed and it is anticipated that the regulations will be presented to the House for consideration immediately after Christmas. If the House is content, it should be possible to legally establish the Licensing Authority by 1 April 2005.
	Once established, the authority will need to develop and put in place licensing arrangements. This will include work to develop the conditions to be attached to a licence and the associated audit and compliance arrangements. We are working with stakeholders to ensure that the authority will be in a position to make early progress on these issues. We hope that the authority can start dealing with the first round of licence applications in 2005 with a view to completing the process of issuing first licences by mid 2006.
	In the mean time, the Code of Practice launched recently by the Ethical Trading Initiative Temporary Labour Working Group, provides an important opportunity for the whole food chain to show its commitment to a reduction in worker exploitation while work on the introduction of the statutory licensing arrangements proceeds in parallel.
	Once the first round of licence applications have been dealt with we will bring the offence of operating as a gangmaster without a licence into effect. At this stage all gangmasters will need to be licensed.

Departmental Telephones

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on the use of telephones in his Department by members of staff for their personal use for (i) domestic calls and (ii) international calls; and if he will make a statement.

Charlotte Atkins: Staff have guidance setting out their responsibilities not to misuse the telephone, e-mail and internet systems. In order to ensure that the systems are not abused or that the Department's security is not compromised, the Department may monitor, calls from time to time.
	Access to all international numbers is only granted to staff who have a business need to make such international calls. Calls to premium cost networks eg premium rate numbers and some foreign mobile networks are barred completely.

Departmental Telephones

John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures have been taken to ensure the telephones in his Department are not used by staff for making unauthorised personal calls to international numbers.

Charlotte Atkins: Access to all international numbers is only granted to staff who have a business need to make such international calls. Daily call logging reports are provided which highlight the longest and highest cost calls. As a result, some staff have been made to refund the cost of high cost personal calls. Calls to premium cost networks, eg, premium rate numbers and some foreign mobile networks, are barred completely.

Driving Tests

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average length of time is between receipt of an application for a (a) theory driving test and (b) practical driving test and the date of the test in (i) Southwark, (ii) Greater London and (iii) England; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The information is as follows:
	(a) Theory Tests
	
		Days
		
			 Centre/area Average time between booking and test (A) Average time between preferred date and test (B) 
		
		
			 Southwark 25 7 
			 London and south east area 20 4 
			 England 18 2 
		
	
	Many candidates prefer to book their theory test some time in advance, as the above data illustrates. Therefore, the average time between booking date and test(shown in column (A)(does not represent the length of time candidates must wait before they may take a test. The average waiting time is more accurately reflected by measuring the number of days between appointment date requested and appointed date allocated (column (B)).
	The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) does not analyse data for Greater London as a discrete area. Figures given, therefore, relate to the London and south east area.
	(b) Practical Car Tests
	
		
			 Centre/area Average waiting time (weeks) 
		
		
			 Hither Green DTC 10 
			 South Norwood DTC 11 
			 London and south east area . 10.4 
			 Great Britain 7.5 
		
	
	There is no practical driving test centre (DTC) at Southwark. The nearest test centres are located at Hither Green and South Norwood. DSA does not analyse data for Greater London as a discrete area. Figures given, therefore, relate to the London and south east area. Data for practical tests is not readily available for England as distinct from other countries in Great Britain. DSA has a target to maintain a national average waiting time for car practical tests of six weeks and is seeking to reduce the current figure to target.

Motorways

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the first motorway picnic area to be operative under the provisions of clause 40 of the Road Safety Bill.

David Jamieson: Once the Road Safety Bill has completed its passage through Parliament the Secretary of State for Transport will have the authority under Clause 40 to establish a motorway rest area. It is expected that this could be by July 2005. The first picnic area could then be operative, subject to obtaining the appropriate planning consents and the availability of funding, by summer 2008.

Railways

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what impact the designation of the Grantham to Skegness branch line as a Community Rail Line pilot will have on (a) maintenance funding, (b) service improvement, (c) freight traffic and (d) improving facilities at stations along the line.

Tony McNulty: The Grantham to Skegness line is proposed as a pilot scheme under the Government's Community Rail Development Strategy. The objectives of the strategy are to provide a strategic framework for local and rural lines within which they can develop and be put on a sustainable basis for the medium to long term through increasing ridership, freight use and net revenue, managing costs down and greater involvement from the local community. The purpose of the pilot projects is to test the deliverability of these objectives. The scope of each pilot will be determined as the remit for each is developed with the relevant local authorities, Rail Passengers' Committee, rail operators and other funding partners.

School Playing Fields

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many school playing fields have been sold in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Stephen Twigg: Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 was introduced in England on 1 October 1998 to stop the indiscriminate sale of school playing fields that occurred in the 1980s and early to mid 1990s. As the legislation only applies to England, we have no records of how many school playing fields have been sold in Wales. The sale of school playing fields in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Assembly.
	Applications to sell school playing fields are only approved where it is clear that any proceeds will be used to improve school sports provision or education facilities. All applications made since 16 July 2001 are scrutinised by the independent School Playing Fields Advisory Panel to make sure that they meet our published criteria. The Panel comprises representatives from the National Playing Fields Association, the Central Council of Physical Recreation, Learning through Landscapes, the National Association of Headteachers and the Local Government Association.
	The figures requested are shown in the following table. In 15 of these 109 applications new or replacement sports pitches of the same size or greater were to be bought from the proceeds. A further 41 applications involved land at closed or closing school sites and in 39 of the remaining 53 cases, the proceeds are to be used to improve sports facilities, such as new all-weather pitches, sports hails or improved grass sports pitches. In the remaining 12 cases, the proceeds are to provide better education facilities at schools, such as new classrooms and performing arts facilities.
	
		
			 Calendar year Sports pitch applications approved 
		
		
			 2000 32 
			 2001 22 
			 2002 24 
			 2003 17 
			 2004 (to 26 November) 14 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. The table comprises applications from local authorities, foundation, voluntary and former grant-maintained schools to sell school playing fields capable of forming at least a small sports pitch.
	2. All sale proceeds are to be used to provide new or improved sports or education facilities at maintained schools.
	3. "Sports pitch" means an area of open grassed land which is equal to, or larger than, the Football Association's recommended 2,000m(4) area for games played by under-10s and which has a configuration making it suitable for sports, whether laid out as a sports pitch or not.

Inheritance Tax

John Grogan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what the total amount of relief from inheritance tax granted in respect of agricultural land in North Yorkshire was in each of the past five years;
	(2)  in how many cases relief from inheritance tax was granted in North Yorkshire in each of the past five years;
	(3)  if he will make a statement on the eligibility criteria for the granting of relief from inheritance tax.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number and value of assets relieved of inheritance tax in the UK is published in Table 12.2 of Inland Revenue Statistics 2004 at: www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/inheritance tax/tablel2–2.xls/. A regional breakdown is not available.
	The eligibility criteria for inheritance tax reliefs depends on the particular relief. Agricultural property relief is available for land (including qualifying farmhouses and cottages) which has been owned by the transferor, and occupied for farming, for at least seven years, or two years for owner occupiers. Inland Revenue booklet IHT17 gives more information and is available at www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/leaflets/iht.htm.

Building Regulations

Robert Syms: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the cost to small businesses of (a) certification and (b) the regulatory burden of Part P of Building Regulations when it comes into effect on 1 January 2005.

Phil Hope: I refer the hon. Member to the Part P Regulatory Impact Assessment which is available in the Library of the House and on the Office Deputy Prime Minister's website.

Building Regulations

Robert Syms: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the financial impact for local authorities of Part P of the Building Regulations from 1 January 2005.

Phil Hope: I refer the hon. Member to the Part P Regulatory Impact Assessment which is available in the Library of the House and on the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's website.

Hereford and Worcester Fire Authority

Richard Taylor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the costs were of rebilling residents in the counties of Hereford and Worcester following the capping of the fire authority's funding; and whether this cost will have an effect on services.

Nick Raynsford: The Government has not measured the cost independently. When its residents were retailed, Hereford and Worcester Fire Authority stated that the cost of retailing was 450,000.
	In designating Hereford and Worcester Fire Authority for capping in 2004–05, the Government took into account representations made by the authority, including the costs of retailing. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is confident that the authority can deliver a good service and carry out all its statutory functions within its revised budget requirement. The authority could have avoided the costs of retailing by not setting an excessive budget increase. It increased its budget requirement by 19.4 per cent. and council tax by 29.4 per cent.

Bathside Bay Container Terminal

Christopher Chope: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister on what date he expects the outcome of the public inquiry into the Bathside Bay container terminal to be announced.

Keith Hill: The Inquiry into the proposed container terminal at Bathside Bay closed on 21 October. The Inspector is currently preparing his report, which is expected to be submitted to the First Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Transport by the end of March. Decisions on the proposals will be issued as soon as the respective Secretaries of State have had sufficient opportunity to consider the Inspector's recommendations.

Grants

Oona King: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many cash incentive scheme grants were made by each local authority in London in 2003–04; and what the total value of these grants was in each authority.

Keith Hill: The information reported by London Boroughs on the number of cash incentive scheme grants made in 2003–04 and the total value of their grants is as follows:
	
		
			   £ thousand 
			  Total number of grants Total expenditure 
		
		
			 Barnet 33 854 
			 Brent 32 128 
			 Camden 13 565 
			 Croydon 46 928 
			 Baling 36 1,080 
			 Enfield 37 879 
			 Haringey 28 551 
			 Hillingdon 21 254 
			 Islington 1 24 
			 Kingston upon Thames 8 159 
			 Lewisham 35 649 
			 Merton 6 125 
			 Tower Hamlets 71 1,206 
			 Waltham Forest 9 . 265 
			 Wandsworth 35 715 
			 Westminster 14 395 
			 London 425 8,777

Traveller Caravans

Tom Cox: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many traveller caravans were on (a) authorised and (b) unauthorised sites in the Greater London area in each of the last three years.

Keith Hill: The information is as follows:
	(a) Figures for caravans on authorised sites in the Greater London area are as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 January 2002 649 
			 July 2002 741 
			 January 2003 621 
			 July 2003 701 
			 January 2004 699 
			 July 2004 638 
		
	
	(b) figures for caravans on unauthorised sites in the Greater London area are as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 January 2002 163 
			 July 2002 90 
			 January 2003 100 
			 July 2003 124 
			 January 2004 170 
			 July 2004 209

National Assembly for Wales

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the memoranda of understanding under which responsibilities for specific services have been transferred to the National Assembly for Wales; and if he will put a copy of each memorandum in the Library.

Don Touhig: Responsibility for specific services can only be transferred to the Assembly by primary legislation or by Order under the Government of Wales Act 1998 (the Act).
	Section 41 of the Act provides that arrangements may be made between the Assembly and any relevant authority for any functions of one of them to be exercised by, or by the staff of, the other. "Relevant authority" is defined as "any Government Department, any local or public authority or the holder of any public office." Such agreements do not transfer responsibility; they deal with administrative arrangements as to how it will be exercised.
	No central record is kept of such agreements, but I am aware that a number are in force in both directions. The Act does not specify any particular form for these agreements.

Advertising Approval

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which senior NHS staff approved the advertising feature in NHS Family Choice Magazine promoting Popzone; and what criteria are used to determine from which suppliers advertisements are accepted for inclusion in the magazine.

Rosie Winterton: The Department does not produce NHS Family Choice magazine. It is not responsible for the content of the magazine and does not support or endorse any of the content. A private sector company called Cyworks plc. produces the magazine. The Department has repeatedly requested Cyworks to stop using the NHS letters as part of the magazine title. To date all such requests have been ignored.

General Medical Council (Complaints)

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what recent discussions he has had on the five year limitation for lodging a complaint with the General Medical Council;
	(2)  if he will take steps to ensure that complaints submitted to the General Medical Council outside the five year limitation period are investigated if it might have a bearing on a doctor's fitness to practise;
	(3)  what discussions took place between his Department and the General Medical Council prior to the introduction of recent changes in the time limit for lodging complaints.

John Hutton: The recent changes to the General Medical Council's (GMC) fitness to practise procedures were made by amendment of the "Medical Act 1983" under "The Medical Act 1983 (Amendment) Order 2002". These changes came into force on 1 November 2004. The Department discussed the changes with the CMC as part of the preparations for the making of the Order, which was subject to a statutory consultation before it was laid in Parliament for approval.
	The time limit during which an allegation must be made to the CMC was changed by GMC amendment rules in November 2002 (SI 2002/2572). As is usual practice, these rules were discussed with the GMC while they were being drafted. "The General Medical Council (Fitness to Practise) Rules Order of Council 2004", which also came into force on 1 November re-enacted this previous change. The Rules already provide in rule 4(5) for an allegation made outside the five-year period to be proceeded with if in the exceptional circumstances of the case the registrar considers it is in the public interest to do so.

MRSA

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times the cause of death at the Medway Maritime Hospital has been recorded as being due to the MRSA virus since 2001.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 2 December 2004
	I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Derek Wyatt, dated 7 December 2004
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many times the cause of death at the Medway Maritime Hospital has been recorded as being due to the MRSA bacterium. I am replying in his absence. (201533)
	The latest year for which figures are available is 2002. The latest year for which figures are available is 2002. The figure for Medway Maritime Hospital was provided in a written answer published in Hansard on 22 July 2004, column 471W.

Nurses

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 29 November 2004, ref 199923, what the whole-time equivalent figure for the period September 2003 to March 2004 was; and what estimates his Department has made of further headcount and whole-time equivalent increases between March 2004 and 2008.

John Hutton: holding answer 6 December 2004
	As at March 2004, there are an estimated 314,000 whole-time equivalent qualified nurses, including practice nurses, employed in the national health service in England, including an estimated increase of 9,000 since September 2003.
	"Delivering the NHS Plan" included an expectation that by 2008, there would be 35,000 more headcount nurses and midwives employed in the NHS than there were in 2001. This expectation has already been met.
	We have no further specific targets for increases in the NHS nursing workforce, though we expect that there will be further significant increases.

Training Courses

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) cost to the Department, (b) title and (c) location was of each training course organised by his Department for its staff in each financial year since 1997–98.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is no longer held by the Department and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Training Courses

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what financial penalties were paid in each financial year since 1997–98 to training providers by the Department for training courses prepared for its staff but which were subsequently cancelled at the Department's request.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is no longer held by the Department and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Freedom of Information Act

Llew Smith: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 25 November 2004, Official Report, column 7WS, on section 45 code of practice of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, whether the Department has received any representations on this announcement; and whether the Department conducted a public consultation prior to making the announcement.

Christopher Leslie: Further to his written ministerial statement issued on 25 November 2004, I can confirm that my right hon. and Noble Friend the Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs has received one representation regarding the revised Section 45 Code of Practice of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
	In accordance with Section 45(4) of the Freedom of Information Act, the Secretary of State consulted the Information Commissioner on the content of the revised Section 45 Code of Practice. The Department also consulted fully with other Government Departments on the revised Section 45 Code of Practice. There was no public consultation exercise.

Non-departmental Public Bodies

Llew Smith: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs by what methods charters establishing non-departmental public bodies may be revoked.

Christopher Leslie: Charters may be revoked by Act of Parliament or by Order in council; and may also be surrendered.

Child Support Agency

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will ensure that the money paid to him in error by the Child Support Agency is passed without further delay to Ms Oakes, the constituent of the hon. Member for Birkenhead.

Chris Pond: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr. Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	Letter from Doug Smith to Mr. Frank Field, dated 8 December 2004
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will ensure that the money paid to him in error by the Child Support Agency is passed without further delay to Ms Oakes the constituent of the honourable Member for Birkenhead.
	As individual cases are confidential, I will write to you separately about this case. This is in line with paragraph 12, part 2 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Pensions

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what expenditure on contracted-out rebates went on (a) approved personal pensions, (b) stakeholder pensions, (c) contracted-out money purchase schemes and (d) defined benefit pensions in each year since 1997.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the following table:
	
		
			  £ billion 
			  Estimated cost of rebates 
			  (a) (b) (c) (d)  
			 Tax year APPS SHPS COMPS DBS Total 
		
		
			 1997–98 2.2 0.5 4.7 7.4 
			 1998–99 2.2 0.6 5.0 7.8 
			 1999–2000 2.4 0.5 5.2 8.2 
			 2000–01 2.7 0.6 5.4 8.7 
			 2001–02 2.8 0.5 5.6 9.0 
			 2002–03 3.5 0.6 6.3 10.5 
			 2003–04 3.2 0.6 6.4 10.2 
			 2004–05 3.4 0.6 6.7 10.7 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures do not sum due to rounding (to nearest £100 million) and are consistent with the rebate estimates for the 2004 Pre-Budget Report.
	2. Figures are for Great Britain only and are calculated on an accruals' basis where actual data exists and on GAD estimates where it does not (from 2002–03 onwards).
	3. Information on rebate expenditure for stakeholder pensions is not separately available and has been included (from 2002–03) with the APR expenditure.
	4. The large increase in expenditure for 2002–03 is due to the increase in the level of the rebate which applied from the beginning of that tax-year.
	Source:
	Government Actuary's Department (GAD)

Winter Fuel Payment

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the assumptions were behind the fall in the projected cost of winter fuel payments in 2006–07 and 2007–08 compared to previous years.

Malcolm Wicks: The commitments to increase winter fuel payments from £150 to £200 a year and to pay an additional £100 to households with someone aged 80 or over were both made for the lifetime of this Parliament. The projected costs of winter fuel payments in 2006–07 and 2007–08 reflect this.

Sustainable Timber

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans her Department has to fund the (a) establishment and (b) maintenance of the Central Point of Expertise on Timber.

Ruth Kelly: Cabinet Office has offered to assist with funding for the creation of a Central Point of Expertise on Timber (CPET). It is the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) responsibility to establish whether offers and/or fees and charges would be appropriate for the establishment and maintenance of CPET.

Angola

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid programmes, have been supported in Angola during each of the last five years; at what value; and what programmes his Department is planning for the next three years.

Hilary Benn: The following areas of work have been supported by DFID during each of the last five financial years:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 Peace building  
			 1999–2000 0 
			 2000–01 72,000 
			 2001–02 25,735 
			 2002–03 165,827 
			 2003–04 607,814 
			 2004–05 456,808 
			   
			 Humanitarian assistance  
			 1999–2000 4,005,971 
			 2000–01 2,104,295 
			 2001–02 2,191,312 
			 2002–03 6,835,881 
			 2003–04 3,783,907 
			 2004–05 2,163,084 
			   
			 Economic reform and poverty reduction (including HIV/AIDS) 
			 1999–2000 0 
			 2000–01 0 
			 2001–02 48,275 
			 2002–03 221,891 
			 2003–04 239,011 
			 2004–05 864,293 
			   
			 Other sectors: e.g. education, urban poverty 
			 1999–2000 1,122,885 
			 2000–01 1,638,116 
			 2001–02 1,245,182 
			 2002–03 2,412,262 
			 2003–04 2,990,604 
			 2004–05: 1,915,897 
		
	
	In addition to the figures in the table DFID is also supporting a democratisation programme to the value of £200,000 in the year 2004–05.
	DFID's current activities in the above areas of focus (peace-building, humanitarian reform, economic reform and poverty reduction) will continue until the end of 2006. DFID will remain actively involved in supporting Angola's post-conflict transition and is also looking at how we can strengthen our collaboration with the World Bank (WB) and European Commission (EC): we are also looking at what more we can do to include Angola in DFID's support to the wider South African Development Community (SADC).
	DFID is also funding programmes in Angola multilaterally, through the EC and the UN. In 2002 (the latest available figures) the UK's attributed share of multilateral expenditure in Angola was as follows:
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 EC 5 
			 UN 1.5

Accountancy Services

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the total cost to her Department was for accountancy services in each of the last two years.

Patricia Hewitt: Total costs to the DTI for accountancy services are detailed in the following table.
	
		
			 £ million 
			  1. Accounts Services Provision 2. PFI Agreement 3. System Upgrade 4. Services to Internal Audit 
		
		
			 2002–03 2.7 1.4 5 0.4 
			 2003–04 3.2 1.4 3.5 0.4 
		
	
	1. The Department entered into a contract for the provision of accounts services with Amey plc, effective from 1 April 2002. The contract covers a 12 year period with a break option at seven years and covers a number of additional services not provided under the previous contract.
	2. The Department entered into a PFI agreement to maintain hardware to support accounts services provision. The PFI agreement continues until September 2008.
	3. The Department implemented an updated financial accounting system in September 2003.
	4. Internal Audit services to the Department are delivered under a strategic partnership arrangement with Ernst and Young.

British Summer Time

Parmjit Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will bring forward legislation to make British summer time permanent and end the biannual time change.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Government has no plans to alter the present summer time arrangements, but we shall continue to listen to the arguments for and against change.

Departmental Estate

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her estimate is of the cost of building refurbishment carried out by her Department in each of the last two years.

Patricia Hewitt: My Department undertakes a wide variety of projects as part of on-going maintenance and improvements of its current stock. The cost of refurbishment projects involving significant works to the building services and fabric of the DTI HQ estate for the last two complete financial years is as follows:
	
		
			  £000 
			 Financial year Refurbishment 
		
		
			 2002/03 1,,680 
			 2003/04 2,300

Electrical Accidents

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people have been (a) killed and (b) seriously injured due to electrical accidents in their homes; and how many of these took place in (i) bathrooms and (ii) kitchens.

Gerry Sutcliffe: DTI no longer provides a service on accident statistics. Information on fatalities can be obtained from The Health and Safety Executive: www.hse.gov.uk tel. 0870 154 5500 and The Office of National Statistics: www.statistics.gov.uk tel. 0845 601 3034; or for non-fatalities from The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents: www.rospa.com tel. 0870 777 2171.

EU Social Chapter

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her estimate is of the administrative costs to UK employers of providing the EU Social Chapter rights; and what methodology she used for calculating the cost.

Gerry Sutcliffe: DTI has estimated the administrative cost to UK employers of transposing the Social Chapter Directives in its Regulatory Impact Assessments. The Directives in question concern:
	(1) Parental leave (including the 1999 extension to the implementing Regulations)
	(2) European Works Councils
	(3) Part-time work
	(4) Burden of proof in sex discrimination cases
	(5) Fixed term employees
	(6) Information and consultation.
	The total administrative(or implementation(costs to UK employers associated with the provision of these EU Social Chapter rights is £0.68 million a year. Additionally, the DTI identified one-off implementation costs, estimated to be in the region of £3.3 million. It should be noted that the Department's Regulatory Impact Assessments also highlighted significant benefits associated with the Social Chapter Directives.

EU Social Chapter

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate she has made of the cost to UK employers of establishing policies associated with EU Social Chapter rights; and what methodology she used to make that estimate.

Gerry Sutcliffe: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given today to his question number 202138.

Radioactive Chocolate

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the storage of chocolate radioactively contaminated following the fire at Windscale in 1957.

Mike O'Brien: A fire broke out in Pile 1 on 10 October 1957, and was extinguished on 11 October. Radioactivity was released to the environment. The main public health concern was the contamination of locally produced milk by the short-lived isotope iodine 131. Milk produced within 80 square miles of the site was banned from 12 October, and the ban was extended to 200 square miles on 15 October.
	At that time, the chocolate manufacturer Rowntree ran a factory in Egremont, close to the Windscale site. Records in one UKAEA file show that on 8 November 1957 Rowntree wrote to seek compensation for 90 tons of chocolate milk crumb manufactured between 11 and 15 October, which they believed to have been contaminated as a result of the Windscale fire. UKAEA contested this claim on the grounds that "the crumb is completely safe for consumption owing to the short half- life of the radioactive iodine which was the sole source of contamination".
	The correspondence continued for some months, culminating in an exchange of letters between the Chairman of Rowntree and Sir Donald Perrott of UKAEA. Rowntree acknowledged "we fully accept your advice that, as a matter of scientific fact, the 90 tons of crumb do not represent a radioactive hazard", but stated that in the interest of customer relations and commercial prudence, they wished to have the crumb destroyed or disposed of. They sought the UKAEA's help to do so, and offered to meet the costs incurred. UKAEA agreed "to accept responsibility for destroying this material" on Rowntree's behalf.

Burma

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which EU-Burmese joint ventures have been affected by Annex II of the Council Common Position on Burma 2004/730/CFSP and Annex IV of Council Regulation (EC) 798/2004.

Jack Straw: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave him on 18 November 2004, Official Report, column 1778W.
	We are aware that one EU company has claimed that they have been erroneously implicated through the listings of state owned enterprises in Annex II of the Common Position on Burma 2004/730/CFSP and Annex IV of Council Regulation 798/2004.
	We are not aware at present that any other EU-Burmese joint ventures have been affected.

Departmental Costs

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on energy costs incurred by his Department in each of the last two years.

Bill Rammell: The recorded energy costs incurred by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in each of the last two years are:
	
		
			   £ 
			  UK Overseas 
		
		
			 2002–03 1,407,600 10,705,423 
			 2003–04 2,264,018 10,422,585

Iran

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the treatment by the Iranian courts of offences committed against Bahá'-s.

Bill Rammell: We have serious concerns about the situation of the Bahá'- community in Iran. We have received reports that Bahá'- in Iran have suffered intimidation and harassment and face difficulties in securing full and free access to the courts. We have raised our concerns with the Iranian authorities on many occasions, including through the EU/Iran human rights dialogue.

Care Costs

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost of providing (a) elderly, (b) hospital, (c) community, (d) maternity and child health, (e) family and childcare and (f) learning disability care in the Province was in each of the last five years.

Angela Smith: The information requested is provided in the following table.
	
		Total trust expenditure in Northern Ireland
		
			  £ million 
			  1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 
		
		
			 Elderly care 337.5 358.9 388.8 413.3 473.6 
			 Hospital 694.0 756.4 821.7 896.8 990.6 
			 Community (excluding personal social services) 142.0 152.7 171.4 193.7 223.0 
			 Maternity and child health 62.3 66.9 71.9 83.5 89.6 
			 Family and child care 66.8 73.9 83.5 94.8 108.0 
			 Learning disability 88.9 94.3 100.5 114.7 136.5 
		
	
	Note:
	Most of the main programmes of care make use of services from the hospital, community and personal social services sectors. Expenditure figures for the hospital and community sectors quoted above can therefore overlap with those for individual programmes.

Emergency Services

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost of providing (a) ambulance and (b) fire services in the Province was in each of the last five years.

Angela Smith: I refer the hon. Member to my answers of 16 November 2004, Official Report, column 1352W, and Official Report, column 1361W.

Health and Personal Social Services

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the expenditure per head of population in the Province on health and personal social services was in the last year for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: The public expenditure on all health and personal social services per head of population in the province for the 2003–04 financial year was £1,706.

Anti-social Behaviour Act

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many antisocial behaviour orders have been imposed in (a) the Greater London area and (b) the London borough of Wandsworth in each of the last two years.

Hazel Blears: The available information, up to 30 June 2004 (latest available), is given in the table.
	
		The number of ASBOs issued in Greater London, at all courts, as reported to the Home Office, by area, in which restrictions are imposed, and period.
		
			 Area 1 July 2002 to 30 June 2003 1 July 2003 to 30 June 2004(26) Total 
		
		
			 Greater London 38 183 221 
			 of which
			 Wandsworth London borough — 8 8 
		
	
	(26) Latest available

Anti-social Behaviour Act

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many antisocial behaviour orders were (a) accepted and (b) rejected by each court area in each year since their introduction.

Hazel Blears: The available information is given in tables A and B.
	
		Table A: The number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued at all courts, as reported to the Home Office,from 1 April 1999 to 30 June 2004 (latest available)—England and Wales
		
			 From 1 January 2002 to 31 December 20022 
			 Type of court/area From 1 April 1999 to 31 May 20001 From 1 June 2000 to 31 December 2000 From 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2001 On application On conviction 
		
		
			 Magistrates court committee (MCC)/police force area 
			 Avon and Somerset 9 3 15 7 — 
			 Bedfordshire 0 0 4 4 — 
			 Cambridgeshire 5 1 2 2 — 
			 Cheshire 0 0 2 13 — 
			 Cleveland 1 4 4 5 — 
			 Cumbria 1 1 1 13 — 
			 Derbyshire 3 7 6 2 — 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1 0 10 1 — 
			 Dorset 0 2 2 0 — 
			 Durham 0 4 9 8 — 
			 Essex 0 0 0 2 — 
			 Gloucestershire 0 2 2 1 — 
			 GLMCA/Metropolitan Police(29) 9 19 13 19 — 
			 Greater Manchester 10 2 24 77 1 
			 Hampshire 1 2 4 9 — 
			 Hertfordshire 1 1 9 6 — 
			 Humberside 0 9 4 4 — 
			 Kent 0 3 17 16 — 
			 Lancashire 5 5 8 13 — 
			 Leicestershire 1 4 0 1 — 
			 Lincolnshire 0 0 2 1 — 
			 Merseyside 8 3 7 22 — 
			 Norfolk 6 0 12 7 — 
			 Northamptonshire 0 2 6 1 — 
			 Northumbria 8 5 9 16 — 
			 North Yorkshire 4 0 7 0 — 
			 Nottinghamshire 1 4 11 1 — 
			 South Yorkshire 3 1 7 16 — 
			 Staffordshire 0 4 6 12 — 
			 Suffolk 3 0 4 5 — 
			 Surrey 0 2 2 2 — 
			 Sussex 3 4 3 16 — 
			 Thames Valley 1 1 7 6 — 
			 Warwickshire 0 1 2 15 — 
			 West Mercia 5 7 39 29 — 
			 West Midlands 11 28 43 23 — 
			 West Yorkshire 4 2 14 14 — 
			 Wiltshire 0 0 0 1 — 
			 England 104 133 317 390 1 
			   
			 Dyfed Powys 0 0 0 0 — 
			 Gwent 0 0 2 2 — 
			 North Wales 0 1 0 7 — 
			 South Wales 0 1 3 3 — 
			 Wales 0 2 5 12 0 
			   
			 Total E and W MCC/pfa 104 135 322 402 1 
			   
			 County Court Group  
			 Midland and Oxford Group 4 * * * — * 
			 Midland Group 1 * * * — * 
			 Northern Groups 1 and 2 * * * — * 
			 North Eastern Groups 3 and 5 * * * — * 
			 South East (London) Groups 1 and 2 * * * — * 
			 South East (Prov.) Groups 1, 3, 4, 5 * * * — * 
			 Wales and Chester Groups 2 and 3 * * * — * 
			 Western Group 3 * * * — * 
			 Total E and W County Court Group * * * — * 
			   
			 Crown Court Circuit  
			 Midland * * * * * 
			 Northern * * * * * 
			 North Eastern * * * * * 
			 South Eastern London * * * * * 
			 South Eastern Provincial * * * * * 
			 Wales and Chester * * * * * 
			 Western * * * * * 
			 Total E and W Crown Court Circuits * * * * * 
			   
			 Total all courts England and Wales 104 135 322 402 * 
		
	
	
		
			  From 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2003 From 1 January 2004 to  30 June 2004 
			 Type of court/area On application On conviction On application On conviction Total 1 April 1999 to 30 June 2004 
		
		
			 Magistrates court committee (MCC)/police force area 
			 Avon and Somerset 2 15 3 19 73 
			 Bedfordshire 5 8 1 3 25 
			 Cambridgeshire 12 2 2 8 34 
			 Cheshire 18 10 6 14 63 
			 Cleveland 12 1 7 — 34 
			 Cumbria 2 11 4 5 38 
			 Derbyshire 2 2 2 8 32 
			 Devon and Cornwall 3 4 — 10 29 
			 Dorset 4 — 6 2 16 
			 Durham 10 2 11 4 48 
			 Essex 7 6 4 12 31 
			 Gloucestershire 4 1 4 3 17 
			 GLMCA/Metropolitan Police(29) 51 42 30 72 255 
			 Greater Manchester 123 66 83 72 458 
			 Hampshire 17 8 12 10 63 
			 Hertfordshire 7 5 3 15 47 
			 Humberside 4 2 6 7 36 
			 Kent 7 8 4 10 65 
			 Lancashire 18 20 20 18 107 
			 Leicestershire 1 1 — 4 12 
			 Lincolnshire — 4 — 1 8 
			 Merseyside 34 3 14 13 104 
			 Norfolk 5 — 7 6 43 
			 Northamptonshire 1 — 7 3 20 
			 Northumbria 4 12 4 4 62 
			 North Yorkshire 5 1 2 6 25 
			 Nottinghamshire 8 6 4 16 51 
			 South Yorkshire 19 9 12 10 77 
			 Staffordshire 5 19 4 11 61 
			 Suffolk 8 12 — 23 55 
			 Surrey 3 1 13 1 24 
			 Sussex 18 3 19 15 81 
			 Thames Valley 6 5 9 11 46 
			 Warwickshire 9 2 7 4 40 
			 West Mercia 20 5 9 9 123 
			 West Midlands 19 49 8 31 212 
			 West Yorkshire 70 9 101 27 241 
			 Wiltshire 3 2 1 3 10 
			 England 546 356 429 490 2,766 
			   
			 Dyfed Powys 2 9 1 4 16 
			 Gwent 2 3 5 2 16 
			 North Wales 3 8 1 7 27 
			 South Wales 14 15 2 11 49 
			 Wales 21 35 9 24 108 
			   
			 Total E and W MCC/pfa 567 391 438 514 2,874 
			   
			 County Court Group  
			 Midland and Oxford Group 4 — * 3 * 3 
			 Midland Group 1 — * 1 * 1 
			 Northern Groups 1 and 2 2 * 2 * 4 
			 North Eastern Groups 3 and 5 — * 2 * 2 
			 South East (London) Groups 1 and 2 1 * 1 * 2 
			 South East (Prov.) Groups 1, 3, 4, 5 2 * 4 * 6 
			 Wales and Chester Groups 2 and 3 1 * 2 * 3 
			 Western Group 3 3 * 1 * 4 
			 Total E and W County Court Group 9 * 16 * 25 
			   
			 Crown Court Circuit  
			 Midland * 9 * 19 28 
			 Northern * 31 * 31 62 
			 North Eastern * 5 * 11 16 
			 South Eastern London * 0 * 8 8 
			 South Eastern Provincial * 10 * 9 19 
			 Wales and Chester * 1 * 4 5 
			 Western * 9 * 23 32 
			 Total E and W Crown Court Circuits * 65 * 105 170 
			   
			 Total all courts England and Wales * 641 * 559 3,069 
		
	
	(27) From 1 April 1999 up to 31 May 2000 data were collected by police force area on aggregated numbers only.
	(28) Following introduction of the Police Reform Act ASBOs are available to the courts following conviction of a criminal offence.
	(29) Including City of London.
	
		Table B: The number of applications for antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) refused at the magistrates court, as reported to the Home Office from 1 April 1999 to 30 June 2004 (latest available)—England and Wales
		
			 MCC/police force area (pfa) From 1 April 1999 to 31 May 2000(30) From 1 June 2000 to 31 December 2000 From 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2001 
		
		
			 Cleveland — 1 — 
			 Cumbria — — — 
			 GLMCA/Metropolitan Police(31) — 2 3 
			 Greater Manchester — — — 
			 Hampshire — — 2 
			 Kent — — — 
			 Lancashire — — — 
			 Merseyside 4 — — 
			 Norfolk — — 1 
			 Suffolk — — 1 
			 Sussex — 1 — 
			 Thames Valley — — — 
			 West Midlands — 1 — 
			 West Yorkshire — — — 
			 Wiltshire — — 4 
			 
			 Total England and Wales 4 5 11 
		
	
	
		
			 MCC/police force area (pfa) From 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2002 From 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2003 From 1 January 2004 to 31 June 2004 Total 1 April 1999 to 30 June 2004 
		
		
			 Cleveland — — 1 2 
			 Cumbria 1 — — 1 
			 GLMCA/Metropolitan Police(31) 2 2 — 9 
			 Greater Manchester 1 4 — 5 
			 Hampshire — 1 1 4 
			 Kent 4 — — 4 
			 Lancashire — — 2 2 
			 Merseyside — 1 — 5 
			 Norfolk — — — 1 
			 Suffolk — — — 1 
			 Sussex — — — 1 
			 Thames Valley — 1 — 1 
			 West Midlands — — — 1 
			 West Yorkshire 1 — — 1 
			 Wiltshire — — — 4 
			  
			 Total England and Wales 9 9 4 42 
		
	
	(30) From 1 April 1999 up to 31 May 2000 data were collected by police force area on aggregated numbers only.
	(31) Including City of London.
	Note:
	No notifications have been received of ASBOs refused at the county court.

Anti-social Behaviour Act

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many antisocial behaviour orders have been made by the courts in England and Wales in each year since December 1999, broken down by magistrates court area.

Hazel Blears: Available information on the number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued at all courts, as reported to the Home Office, by court area, is given in the table.
	
		The number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued at all courts, as reported to the Home Office, from 1 April 1999 to 30 June 2004 (latest available). England and Wales
		
			 Type of court/area From 1 April 1999 to 31 May 2000(32) From 1 June 2000 to 31 December 2000 From 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2001 From 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2002 From 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2003 From 1 January 2004 to 30 June 2004 Total April 1999 to 30 June 2004 
		
		
			 Magistrates Courts Committee/police force area 
			 Avon and Somerset 9 3 15 7 17 22 73 
			 Bedfordshire 0 0 4 4 13 4 25 
			 Cambridgeshire 5 1 2 2 14 10 34 
			 Cheshire 0 0 2 13 28 20 63 
			 Cleveland 1 4 4 5 13 7 34 
			 Cumbria 1 1 1 13 13 9 38 
			 Derbyshire 3 7 6 2 4 10 32 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1 0 10 1 7 10 29 
			 Dorset 0 2 2 0 4 8 16 
			 Durham 0 4 9 8 12 15 48 
			 Essex 0 0 0 2 13 16 31 
			 Gloucestershire 0 2 2 1 5 7 17 
			 GLMCA/Metropolitan Police(33) 9 19 13 19 93 102 255 
			 Greater Manchester 10 2 24 78 189 155 458 
			 Hampshire 1 2 4 9 25 22 63 
			 Hertfordshire 1 1 9 6 12 18 47 
			 Humberside 0 9 4 4 6 13 36 
			 Kent 0 3 17 16 15 14 65 
			 Lancashire 5 5 8 13 38 38 107 
			 Leicestershire 1 4 0 1 2 4 12 
			 Lincolnshire 0 0 2 1 4 1 8 
			 Merseyside 8 3 7 22 37 27 104 
			 Norfolk 6 0 12 7 5 13 43 
			 Northamptonshire 0 2 6 1 1 10 20 
			 Northumbria 8 5 9 16 16 8 62 
			 North Yorkshire 4 0 7 0 6 8 25 
			 Nottinghamshire 1 4 11 1 14 20 51 
			 South Yorkshire 3 1 7 16 28 22 77 
			 Staffordshire 0 4 6 12 24 15 61 
			 Suffolk 3 0 4 5 20 23 55 
			 Surrey 0 2 2 2 4 14 24 
			 Sussex 3 4 3 16 21 34 81 
			 Thames Valley 1 1 7 6 11 20 46 
			 Warwickshire 0 1 2 15 11 11 40 
			 West Mercia 5 7 39 29 25 18 123 
			 West Midlands 11 28 43 23 68 39 212 
			 West Yorkshire 4 2 14 14 79 128 241 
			 Wiltshire 0 0 0 1 5 4 10 
			 England 104 133 317 391 902 919 2,766 
			 
			 Dyfed Powys 0 0 0 0 11 5 16 
			 Gwent 0 0 2 2 5 7 16 
			 North Wales 0 1 0 7 11 8 27 
			 South Wales 0 1 3 3 29 13 49 
			 Wales 0 2 5 12 56 33 108 
			 Total E and W magistrates courts 104 135 322 403 958 952 2,874 
			 
			 County court group 
			 Midland and Oxford Group 4 * * * * — 3 3 
			 Midland Group 1 * * * * — 1 1 
			 Northern Groups 1 and 2 * * * * 2 2 4 
			 North Eastern Groups 3 and 5 * * * * — 2 2 
			 South East (London) Groups 1 and 2 * * * * 1 1 2 
			 South East (Prov) Groups 1,3,4,5 * * * * 2 4 6 
			 Wales and Chester Groups 2 and 3 * * * * 1 2 3 
			 Western Group 3 * * * * 3 1 4 
			 Total E and W county courts * * * * 9 16 25 
			 Crown court circuit 
			 Midland * * * * 9 19 28 
			 Northern * * * * 31 31 62 
			 North Eastern * * * * 5 11 16 
			 South Eastern London * * * * 0 8 8 
			 South Eastern Provincial * * * * 10 9 19 
			 Wales and Chester * * * * 1 4 5 
			 Western * * * * 9 23 32 
			 Total E and W Crown court * * * * 65 105 170 
			 Total all courts England and Wales 104 135 322 403 1,032 1,073 3,069 
		
	
	(32) From 1 April 1999 up to 31 May 2000 data were collected by police force area on aggregated numbers only.
	(33) Including City of London.

Anti-social Behaviour Act

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many antisocial behaviour orders have been made on (a) under-16 year olds, (b) 18 to 21 year olds and (c) those aged 21 years or over, broken down by sex, in each of the financial years since April 2000; and what percentage of those orders have been breached.

Hazel Blears: Information is given in table A on the number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued, as reported to the Home Office, by age, sex and financial year.
	The readily available information on ASBO breaches covers the period from 1 June 2000 to 31 December 2002. This is given in table B. Data on breaches up to the end of 2003 will be available in the near future.
	
		Table A: The number of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders issued, as reported to the Home Office, by age, sex and period  England and Wales
		
			  Age 10–15 Age 16–17 Age 18–20 
			  Male Female Persons Male Female Persons Male Female Persons 
		
		
			 1 June 2000 to 31 March 2001 69 3 72 27 4 31 29 1 30 
			 1 April to 31 Mar ch 2002 109 1 110 81 2 83 43 3 46 
			 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 136 8 144 119 10 129 48 6 54 
			 1 Apr il 2003 to 31 March 2004 270 26 296 289 23 312 200 16 216 
			 Total 584 38 622 516 39 555 320 26 346 
		
	
	
		
			  Age 21 and over Age not known Total all 
			  Male Female Persons Male Female Persons ages and not known 
		
		
			 1 June 2000 to31 March 2001 45 15 60 15 5 20 213 
			 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002 46 26 72 9 1 10 321 
			 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 112 39 151 10 7 17 495 
			 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2004 397 117 514 2 3 5 1,343 
			 Total 600 197 797 36 16 52 2,372 
		
	
	(34) Data for the period from 1 April to 31 May 2000 is not available by age or sex.
	
		Table B: The number of Anti-Social Behaviour Orders issued, as reported to the Home Office, by age and sex, in the period from 1 June 2000 to 31 December 20021, and the number breached in the same period England and Wales
		
			  Age 10–15  Age 16–17 Age 18–20 
			  Male Female Person Male Female Person Male Female Persons 
		
		
			 ABSOs issued 266 9 275 191 12 203 103 9 112 
			 ASBO breached 103 3 106 72 5 77 34 6 40 
			 Breach rate(per cent.) 39 33 39 38 42 38 33 67 36 
		
	
	
		
			  Male Age 21 and over Female Persons Male Age not known Female Persons Total all ages and not known 
		
		
			 ASBOs issued 155 68 223 34 13 47 860 
			 ASBOs breached 50 19 69 10 3 13 305 
			 Breach rate (per cent) 32 28 31 29 23 28 35 
		
	
	Note:
	Breaches are counted on a persons basis, i.e multiple breaches (occurring at the same time), or where the order has been breached on more than one occasion, are counted as one breach.

Crime

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answers of 2 November 2004, Official Report, columns 191–92W, on crime, if he will provide the figures for each year between 1997 and 2003–04.

Hazel Blears: The available information is given in the tables. Clear-up rates for all offences in the York CDRP are not available centrally.
	
		Table 1: Clear-up rates for Yorkshire and the Humber—1997–98 to 2001–02
		
			 Percentage 
			 Period Yorkshire and the Humber region North Yorkshire York CDRP 
		
		
			 1997–98 27 26 — 
			 1998–99(35) 28 33 — 
			 1999–2000 24 31 — 
			 2000–01 24 30 — 
			 2001–02 21 26 — 
		
	
	'—' Not available.
	(35) Figures for offences cleared up are affected by changes to the detections counting rules in 1998–99.
	Note:
	The data in this table are prior to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for later years.
	
		Table 2: Clear-up rates for Yorkshire and the Humber—2002–03 and 2003–04 Percentage
		
			 Period Yorkshire and the Humber region North Yorkshire York CDRP 
		
		
			 2002–03 21 26 — 
			 2003–04 21 28 — 
		
	
	'—' Not available.
	(36) The data in this table take account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for earlier years.

Crime

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 2 November, Official Report, columns 191–2W, on crime, how many (a) crimes, (b) burglaries, (c) thefts and (d) vehicle-related crimes were reported to the police (i) in Yorkshire and the Humber and (ii) in North Yorkshire in each year since 1999.

Hazel Blears: The information requested is given in the tables.
	
		Table 1, Recorded Offences in Yorkshire and the Humber and North Yorkshire—1999–2000 to 2001–02
		
			 Number of offences 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 
			 Period Recorded crimes Burglaries Thefts1 Vehicle crimes 
		
		
			 1999–2000 566,933 133,940 241,586 164,474 
			 2000–01 545,950 125,786 229,444 157,144 
			 2001–02 610,223 139,044 254,416 123,614 
			 North Yorkshire 
			 1999–2000 53,554 10,402 24,326 13,315 
			 2000–01 51,551 9,829 22,796 12,274 
			 2001–02 59,149 11,658 25,191 8,176 
		
	
	(37) Excludes vehicle crime.
	Note:
	The data in this table is prior to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for later years.
	
		Table 2, Recorded Offences in Yorkshire and the Humber and North Yorkshire—2002–03 and 2003–04
		
			 Number of offences 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 
			 Period Recorded crimes Burglaries Thefts(38) Vehicle crimes 
		
		
			 2002–03 675,383 142,997 271,360 127,529 
			 2003–04 680,467 121,175 258,505 115,899 
			 North Yorkshire 
			 2002–03 67,798 11,595 28,590 9,642 
			 2003–04 71,473 11,062 29,406 9,516 
		
	
	(38)Excludes vehicle crime.
	Note:
	The data in this table takes account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly. comparable with those for earlier years.

Crime

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of crimes reported to the police in Pendle were cleared up in (a) 1996 and (b) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Hazel Blears: Information on crimes cleared up in Pendle is not collected centrally. Pendle comes within the Pennine Basic Command Unit (BCU). Information at BCD level has only been collected from 1999–2000 onwards so figures for 1996 are not available centrally. The clear-up rate for 2003–04 in the Pennine BCD was 27 per cent.